Valley Regional High School Graduates 158 Seniors in the Class of 2013

DEEP RIVER— The 158 seniors in the Class of 2013 received their diplomas Thursday in the sixty-second annual commencement ceremony at Valley Regional High School. A large crowd of hundreds of friends and family of the graduates gathered amid picture-perfect sunny skies and comfortable temperatures for the ceremony.

High school principal Kristina Martineau said members of the Class of 2013 had pursued their studies while also serving the Region 4 community of Chester, Deep River, and Essex as mentors for younger students and as emergency responders with the town volunteer fire departments and ambulance service. “Achieving and living this balance, the pursuit of personal success and service to others, is what it means to be a Valley Regional High School Warrior,” she said.

Superintendent of Schools Ruth Levy urged the graduates, which she described as “the next generation of our workforce,” to be open to change and learning new skills, adding “one skill of great importance is to love what you choose to do in your life’s work.”

Honors Essayist Anna D’Agostino of Chester noted a four-year high school career is comprised of 720 days. “Here, over 720 days, we grew from curious freshmen to confident young adults,” she said, adding the school’s faculty had “taught us about ourselves and about living and from them we learned the values of hard work and the rewards that come with diligence.” Salutatorian Christopher Meyers of Essex noted that while Valley Regional High School is a small school, its faculty had provided the class with “a remarkable range of opportunity.”

Valedictorian Rachael Aikens of Essex noted that effort and a willingness to try can be as important as winning and success. “What is important now, especially on this graduation day and every day forward, is that you get back up and keep trying,” she said.

The school recognized two past graduates as the newest members of the Valley Regional High School Hall of Fame. Patricia Widlitz, Class of 1963, is a ten-term Democratic State  Representative for her current hometown of Guilford. Scott Wisner, Class of 1984, is a former resident state trooper for Essex who is currently a detective with the Connecticut State Police, Wisner was shot and wounded in the shoulder during an April 8 vehicle crash and shoot out with fleeing robbery suspects on Route 153 in Westbrook.